Semiconductor device

ABSTRACT

A semiconductor device includes: a peripheral circuit region including circuit elements on a substrate, the circuit elements of a page buffer and a row decoder; and a cell region including gate electrode layers, stacked in a first direction, perpendicular to an upper surface of the substrate, and connected to the row decoder, and channel structures extending in the first direction to penetrate through the gate electrode layers and to be connected to the page buffer. The row decoder includes high-voltage elements, operating at a first power supply voltage, and low-voltage elements operating at a second power supply voltage, lower than the first power supply voltage. Among the high-voltage elements, at least one first high-voltage device is in a first well region doped with impurities having a first conductivity-type. At least one of the low-voltage elements is in a second well region surrounding the first well region and doped with impurities having a second conductivity-type, different from the first conductivity-type.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application claims benefit of priority to Korean Patent ApplicationNo. 10-2021-0072834 filed on Jun. 4, 2021 in the Korean IntellectualProperty Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to a semiconductor device.

A semiconductor device may include a cell region, in which memory cellswriting data thereto are disposed, and a peripheral circuit region inwhich circuits controlling the cell region are disposed. The peripheralcircuit region may include a row decoder, a page buffer, a voltagegenerator, a control logic circuit, and/or the like. The row decoder maybe connected to the cell region through wordlines, ground select lines,string select lines, and/or the like. To improve the degree ofintegration of a semiconductor device, various methods for increasingthe degree of integration of a peripheral circuit region as well as acell region have been proposed.

SUMMARY

Example embodiments provide a semiconductor device having improvedperformance and/or degree of integration by forming high-voltageelements and low-voltage elements together in a first region to which anegative voltage is input from a peripheral circuit region and alsoforming low-voltage elements in a second well region surrounding thefirst well region.

According to example embodiments, a semiconductor device includes: aperipheral circuit region including circuit elements on a substrate, thecircuit elements of a page buffer and a row decoder; and a cell regionincluding gate electrode layers, stacked in a first direction,perpendicular to an upper surface of the substrate, and connected to therow decoder, and channel structures extending in the first direction topenetrate through the gate electrode layers and to be connected to thepage buffer. The row decoder includes high-voltage elements, operatingat a first power supply voltage, and low-voltage elements operating at asecond power supply voltage, lower than the first power supply voltage.Among the high-voltage elements, at least one first high-voltage elementis in a first well region doped with impurities having a firstconductivity-type. At least one of the low-voltage elements is in asecond well region surrounding the first well region and doped withimpurities having a second conductivity-type, different from the firstconductivity-type.

According to example embodiments, a semiconductor device includes: aperipheral circuit region including a substrate having a first wellregion doped with impurities having a first conductivity-type and asecond well region doped with impurities having a secondconductivity-type, different from the first conductivity-type, NMOSelements in the first well region, and PMOS elements in the second wellregion; and a cell region including gate electrode layers stacked in afirst direction, perpendicular to an upper surface of the substrate, andchannel structures extending in the first direction to penetrate throughthe gate electrode layers. A thickness of a gate insulating layerincluded in at least one of the NMOS elements in the first well regionis the same as a thickness of a gate insulating layer included in atleast one of the PMOS elements in the second well region.

According to example embodiments, a semiconductor device includes: acell region including a plurality of memory cell strings, each includinga channel layer connected between a bitline and a common source line,memory cells sharing the channel layer and connected to each other inseries, and wordlines connected to the memory cells, are disposed; and aperipheral circuit region including a row decoder connected to thewordlines and a page buffer connected to the bitline. Among NMOSelements and PMOS elements of the row decoder, high-voltage NMOSelements, operating at a first power supply voltage and having a body towhich a negative voltage is input, and first low-voltage NMOS elements,operating at a second power supply voltage, lower than the first powersupply voltage, and having a body to which a negative voltage is input,are in a single first well region. The high-voltage NMOS elements areconnected to the wordlines in the row decoder.

According to example embodiments, a semiconductor device includes: asubstrate including a first well region, doped with impurities having afirst conductivity-type, and a second well region surrounding the firstwell region and doped with impurities having a second conductivity-type,different from the first conductivity-type; a plurality of NMOS elementsin the first well region; and a plurality of PMOS elements in the secondwell region. The first well region is a pocket P-well. At least one ofthe plurality of NMOS elements includes at least one first NMOS elementand at least one second NMOS element, and the at least one second NMOSelement operates at the same power supply voltage as the plurality ofPMOS elements.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of the presentdisclosure will be more clearly understood from the following detaileddescription, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a semiconductor device accordingto example embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a semiconductor device according toexample embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a schematic circuit diagram of a memory block of asemiconductor device according to example embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a layout of a cell region anda peripheral circuit region in a semiconductor device according toexample embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line I-I′ of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II′ of FIG. 7 .

FIGS. 9 to 11 are schematic diagrams illustrating peripheral circuitregions of semiconductor elements according to example embodiments,respectively.

FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a row decoderaccording to example embodiments.

FIG. 13 is a schematic circuit diagram of a row decoder according toexample embodiments.

FIG. 14 is a timing diagram illustrating an operation of the row decoderillustrated in FIG. 13 .

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of asemiconductor device according to example embodiments.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments.

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III′ of FIG. 16 .

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of asemiconductor device according to example embodiments.

FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments.

FIGS. 20 to 23 are diagrams illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments.

FIG. 24 is a schematic block diagram of a storage device including asemiconductor device according to example embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, example embodiments will be described with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a semiconductor device accordingto example embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a semiconductor device 10 may include a controllogic circuit 12, a cell region 13, a page buffer unit 14, a voltagegenerator 15, and/or a row decoder 16. The semiconductor device 10 mayfurther include an interface circuit 11, and may further include acolumn logic, a pre-decoder, a temperature sensor, a command decoder, anaddress decoder, a source driver, and/or the like. The semiconductordevice 10 may be a memory device storing data, for example, anonvolatile memory device retaining stored data even when a power supplythereof is interrupted.

The control logic circuit 12 may control overall operations in thesemiconductor device 10. The control logic circuit 12 may output variouscontrol signals in response to a command CMD and/or an address ADDR fromthe interface circuit 11. For example, the control logic circuit 12 mayoutput a voltage control signal CTRL_vol, a row address X-ADDR, and acolumn address Y-ADDR.

The cell region 13 may include a plurality of memory blocks BLK1 to BLKz(where z is a positive integer), and each of the plurality of memoryblocks BLK1 to BLKz may include a plurality of memory cells. Forexample, the plurality of memory blocks BLK1 to BLKz may include mainblocks, storing data, and at least one spare block storing data requiredfor an operation of the semiconductor device 10. The cell region 13 maybe connected to the page buffer unit 14 through bitlines BL, and may beconnected to the row decoder 16 through wordlines WL, string selectlines SSL, and ground select lines GSL.

In example embodiments, the cell region 13 may include athree-dimensional memory cell array, and the three-dimensional memorycell array may include a plurality of NAND strings. Each of the NANDstrings may include memory cells, respectively connected to wordlinesvertically stacked on a substrate. U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,679,133, 8,553,466,8,654,587, 8,559,235, and U.S. Patent Application Publication No.2011/0233648 are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Inexample embodiments, the cell region 13 may include a two-dimensionalmemory cell array, and the two-dimensional memory cell array may includea plurality of NAND strings arranged in row and column directions.

The page buffer unit 14 may include a plurality of page buffers PB1 toPBn (where n is an integer greater than or equal to 3). The plurality ofpage buffers PB1 to PBn may include a plurality of bitlines BL may beconnected to the memory cells, respectively. The page buffer unit 14 mayselect at least one of the bitlines BL in response to the column addressY-ADDR. The page buffer unit 14 may operate as a write driver or a senseamplifier, depending on an operation mode. For example, during a programoperation, the page buffer unit 14 may apply a bitline voltagecorresponding to data to be programmed in a selected bitline. During aread operation, the page buffer unit 14 may sense current or a voltageof a selected bitline to sense data stored in a memory cell. Data to beprogrammed in the cell region 13 by a program operation and data readfrom the cell region 13 by a read operation may be input/output throughthe interface circuit 11.

The voltage generator 15 may generate various types of voltages forperforming program, read, and erase operations based on the voltagecontrol signal CTRL_vol. For example, the voltage generator 15 maygenerate a program voltage, a read voltage, a pass voltage, a programverify voltage, an erase voltage, and/or the like. In exampleembodiments, the control logic circuit 12 may control the voltagegenerator 15 to generate a voltage for performing program, read, anderase operations using data stored in a spare block. Some of thevoltages generated by the voltage generator 15 may be input to thewordlines WL as a wordline voltage VWL by the row decoder 16, and someof the voltages may be input to a common source line by a source driver.

The row decoder 16 may select one of the plurality of wordlines WL andselect one of the plurality of string selection lines SSL in response tothe row address X-ADDR. For example, the row decoder 16 may apply aprogram voltage and a program verify voltage to a selected wordlineduring a program operation, and may apply a read voltage to the selectedwordline during a read operation.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a semiconductor device according toexample embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 2 , a semiconductor device 50 according to an examplemay include a plurality of mats 51 to 54 and/or a logic circuit 55. Asan example, each of the plurality of mats 51 to 54 may include the cellregion 13, the page buffer unit 15, and the row decoder 16 describedwith reference to FIG. 1 , and the logic circuit 55 may include acontrol logic circuit 12 and a voltage generator 15, and/or the like.

According to example embodiments, each of the plurality of mats 51 to 54may operate independently of each other. For example, while the firstmat 51 performs a program operation to write data received from anexternal memory controller, the logic circuit 55 may read data stored inthe second mat 52 and output the read data to an external entity.

Each of the plurality of planes 51 to 54 may include a cell region and aperipheral circuit region. The cell region may include memory cells, andthe peripheral circuit region may include circuits for controlling thecell region, for example, a row decoder, a page buffer unit, and/or thelike.

In example embodiments, a cell region of each of the plurality of mats51 to 54 may include a plurality of blocks. As described above, theplurality of blocks include main blocks, storing data and outputting thestored data in response to a command from the logic circuit 55, and aspare block storing data required for an operation of the semiconductordevice 50.

FIG. 3 is a schematic circuit diagram of a memory block of asemiconductor device according to example embodiments.

A memory block BLKi illustrated in FIG. 3 represents a three-dimensionalmemory block formed on a substrate in a three-dimensional structure. Forexample, a plurality of NAND strings included in the memory block BLKimay be formed in a direction, perpendicular to a substrate.

Referring to FIG. 3 , the memory block BLKi may include a plurality ofNAND strings NS11 to NS33 connected between bitlines BL1, BL2, and BL3and a common source line CSL. Each of the plurality of NAND strings NS11to NS33 may include a string select transistor SST, a plurality ofmemory cells MC1, MC2, . . . , and MC8, and a ground select transistorGST. In FIG. 3 , each of the plurality of memory NAND strings NS11 toNS33 is illustrated as including eight memory cells MC1, MC2, . . . ,and MC8, but example embodiments are not limited thereto.

The string select transistor SST may be connected to correspondingstring select lines SSL1, SSL2, and SSL3. The plurality of memory cellsMC1, MC2, . . . , and MC8 may be connected to corresponding wordlinesWL1, WL2, . . . , and WL8, respectively. According to exampleembodiments, at least one of the wordlines WL1, WL2, . . . , and WL8 maybe provided as a dummy wordline. The ground select transistor GST may beconnected to corresponding ground select lines GSL1, GSL2, and GSL3. Thestring select transistor SST may be connected to corresponding bitlinesBL1, BL2, and BL3, and the ground select transistor GST may be connectedto the common source line CSL.

Wordlines (for example, WL1) disposed on the same height level may becommonly connected, and ground select lines GSL1, GSL2, and GSL3 andstring select lines SSL1, SSL2, and SSL3 may be separated from eachother, respectively. In FIG. 3 , the memory block BLKi is illustrated asbeing connected to eight wordlines WL1, WL2, . . . , and WL8 and threebitlines BL1, BL2, and BL3, but example embodiments are not limitedthereto.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a layout of a cell region anda peripheral circuit region in a semiconductor device according toexample embodiments.

FIG. 4 may be a diagram illustrating a layout of a cell region and aperipheral circuit region in a single mat, among mats included in asemiconductor device 70 according to example embodiments. Referring toFIG. 4 , a peripheral circuit region may be disposed around cell regions71A and 71B. As an example, the row decoder 72 may be disposed onopposite sides adjacent to each of the cell regions 71A and 71B. Thepage buffers 73A and 73B may be disposed below the cell regions 71A and71B, respectively. The row decoder 72 and the page buffer units 73A and73B may be connected to a logic circuit, controlling the overalloperation of the semiconductor device 70, and an input/output interface,communicating with an external device, through the input/output circuits74A and 74B.

As an example, wordlines included in each of the cell regions 71A and71B may extend in a horizontal direction to be connected to the rowdecoder 72 adjacent to the cell regions 71A and 71B. Bitlines includedin each of the cell regions 71A and 71B may extend in a verticaldirection to be connected to the page buffer units 73A and 73B,respectively disposed below the cell regions 71A and 71B. In exampleembodiments illustrated in FIG. 4 , the cell regions 71A and 71B, therow decoder 72, the page buffers 73A and 73B, the input/output circuits74A and 74B, and/or the like, may be formed on a single substrate.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments, and FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional viewtaken along line I-I′ of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 5 may be a plan view illustrating a portion of a semiconductordevice 100 according to example embodiments. Referring to FIG. 5 , thesemiconductor device 100 may include a cell region CELL and a peripheralcircuit region PERI, and the cell region CELL may include a cell arrayregion CAR and a cell contact region CTR. As an example, the cell arrayregion CAR may be a region in which channel structures CH are disposed,and the cell contact region CTR may be a region in which cell contactsCMC are disposed. In example embodiments illustrated in FIG. 5 , thecell contact region CTR may be disposed between the cell array regionCAR and the peripheral circuit region PERI.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6 together, the cell array region CAR mayinclude gate electrode layers 110 and insulating layers 120, stacked ina first direction (a Z-axis direction), perpendicular to an uppersurface of a substrate 101, channel structures CH extending in the firstdirection to penetrate through the gate electrode layers 110 and theinsulating layers 120, and/or the like. Each of the channel structuresCH may include a channel layer 102 connected to the substrate 101, agate dielectric layer 103 disposed between the channel layer 102 and thegate electrode layers 120, a drain region 104, and/or the like. The gatedielectric layer 103 may include a tunneling layer, a charge storagelayer, a blocking layer, and/or the like, and at least one of the layersincluded in the gate dielectric layer 103 may be formed to surround thegate electrode layers 110. The drain region 104 may be connected to atleast one of the bitlines BL through the bitline contact 105, and thebitlines BL may be connected to a page buffer formed in the peripheralcircuit region PERI.

The cell contact region CTR may include cell contacts CMC connected tothe gate electrode layers 110, dummy channel structures DCH, and/or thelike. The dummy channel structures DCH may have the same structure asthe channel structures CH. However, unlike the channel structures CH,the dummy channel structures DCH may not be connected to the bitlinesBL. The gate electrode layers 110 may form a step in at least one of asecond direction (an X-axis direction) and a third direction (a Y-axisdirection), parallel to the upper surface of the substrate 101 in thecell contact region CTR. The cell contacts CMC may be connected to thegate electrode layers 110, and may be connected to a row decoder formedin the peripheral circuit region PERI by the wordlines 173. Thewordlines 173 may be formed in the interlayer insulating layer 180formed in the cell region CELL and the peripheral circuit region PERI.

The row decoder, formed in the peripheral circuit region PERI, may bedisposed to be adjacent to the cell region CELL in the second direction.The row decoder may include high-voltage elements HVTR, operating at afirst power supply voltage, and low-voltage elements LVTR operating at asecond power supply voltage, lower than the first power supply voltage.The high-voltage elements HVTR may be disposed in a first well regionWA1, and the low-voltage elements LVTR may be disposed in a second wellregion WA2 and a third well region WA3. However, according to exampleembodiments, the high-voltage elements HVTR may be disposed in aplurality of well regions doped with impurities having differentconductivity-types.

The first well region WA1 may be a region doped with impurities having afirst conductivity-type, for example, P-type impurities, and the secondwell region WA2 may be a second well region WA2 having a secondconductivity-type different from the first conductivity-type, forexample, N-type impurities. The second well region WA2 may surround thefirst well region WA1, so that the first well region WA1 may be providedas a pocket P-well. The high-voltage elements HVTR illustrated inexample embodiments of FIGS. 5 and 6 may be high-voltage NMOS elements.When the high-voltage elements HVTR further include high-voltage PMOSelements, the high-voltage PMOS elements may be formed in the first wellregion may be formed in a separate well region doped with impuritieshaving the second conductivity-type, unlike the first well region WA1.

At least one of the low-voltage elements LVTR may be formed in thesecond well region WA2 surrounding the first well region WA1. As anexample, the low-voltage elements LVTR formed in the second well regionWA2 may be low voltage PMOS elements. Among the low-voltage elementsLVTR, low-voltage PMOS elements may be disposed in the second region WA2surrounding the first well region WA1 provided as a pocket P-well, andthus, the degree of integration of the row decoder and the peripheralcircuit area PERI may be increased.

In example embodiments, some of the low-voltage elements LVTR may beformed in the third well region WA3. The third well region WA3 may be awell region doped with impurities having the same firstconductivity-type as the first well region WA1, but may have a dopingconcentration different from that of the first well region WA1. Thelow-voltage elements LVTR, formed in the third well region WA3, may below-voltage NMOS elements.

As an example, among the elements HVTR and LVTR included in the rowdecoder, the high-voltage elements HVTR formed in the first well regionWA1 may provide pass elements directly connected to a wordline 173through a vertical contact VC, and the low-voltage elements LVTR mayprovide a driver circuit driving the pass elements. In exampleembodiments, the driver circuit may include a block decoder, ahigh-voltage switching circuit, a pull-up circuit, and/or the like, andthe configuration and operation of the driver circuit will be describedlater.

Referring to FIG. 6 , each of the high-voltage elements HVTR may includea gate structure 130 and a source/drain region 140, and each of thelow-voltage elements LVTR may include a gate structure 150 and asource/drain region 160. An element contact 171 and lowerinterconnections 172 may be connected to the source/drain regions 140and 160, and the gate structures 130 and 150 may also be connected tothe gate contact.

The gate structure 130 of each of the high-voltage elements HVTR mayinclude a high-voltage gate insulating layer 131, a high-voltage gate132, a gate spacer 133, and/or the like, and the high-voltage gateinsulating layer 131 may be disposed between the high-voltage gate 132and the substrate 101. The gate structure 150 of each of the low-voltageelements LVTR may include a low-voltage gate insulating layer 151, alow-voltage gate 152, and a gate spacer 153, and the low-voltage gateinsulating layer 151 may be disposed between the low-voltage gate 152and the substrate 101.

In example embodiments, the high-voltage gate insulating layer 131 mayhave a greater thickness than the low-voltage gate insulating layer 151.The high-voltage gate 132 and the low-voltage gate 152 may have the samestructure. Accordingly, an upper surface of the high-voltage gate 132may be disposed to be higher than an upper surface of the low-voltagegate 152, or a portion of the substrate 101 may be recessed in a regionin which the high-voltage elements HVTR are formed, so that the uppersurface of the high-voltage gate 132 and the upper surface of thelow-voltage gate 152 may be disposed at the same height level. Astructure, in which the high-voltage elements HVTR and the low-voltageelements LVTR are formed, will be described later.

In example embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6 , the first wellregion WA1 may be disposed to be farthest from the cell region CELL inthe second direction. However, this is only an example embodiment, andthe first well region WA1 may be disposed to be close to the cell regionCELL. Hereinafter, this will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and8 .

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments, and FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional viewtaken along line II-II′ of FIG. 7 .

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8 , a structure of a cell region CELL includedin a semiconductor device 200 may be similar to the structure describedabove with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 . As an example, the cell regionCELL may include gate electrode layers 210 and insulating layers 220,stacked in a first direction (a Z direction), and channel structures CHconnected to a substrate 201 through the gate electrode layers 210 andthe insulating layers 220. The channel structures CH may be connected tobitlines BL through bitline contact 205, and each of the channelstructures CH may includes a channel layer 202, a gate dielectric layer203, a drain region 204, and/or the like. The gate electrode layers 210may be connected to cell contacts CMC, and dummy channel structures CHmay be formed between the cell contacts CMC.

In example embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 , a first wellregion WA1 of the peripheral circuit area PERI may be disposed to beclose to the cell region CELL. Accordingly, a length of wordlines 273,connecting high-voltage elements HVTR providing pass elements and cellcontacts CMC, may be reduced. For example, in example embodimentsillustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 , the high-voltage elements HVTR providingpass elements may be disposed between low-voltage elements LVTRproviding a driver circuit and the cell region CELL.

In the peripheral circuit region PERI, high-voltage elements HVTR may beformed in the first well region WA1, at least one of the low-voltageelements LVTR may be formed in a second well region WA2 surrounding thefirst well region WA1, and some of the low-voltage elements LVTR may beformed in a third well region WA3. A configuration of each of thehigh-voltage elements HVTR and the low-voltage elements LVTR may besimilar to that of the example embodiments described above withreference to FIG. 6 .

FIGS. 9 to 11 are schematic diagrams illustrating peripheral circuitregions of semiconductor elements according to example embodiments,respectively.

Referring to FIG. 9 , a peripheral circuit region of a semiconductordevice 300 according to example embodiments may include a plurality ofcircuit elements HVTR, and LVTR1 to LVTR3. As an example, the pluralityof circuit elements HVTR and LVTR1 to LVTR3 may be elements connected towordlines to provide a row decoder for driving memory cells, and mayinclude a high-voltage element HVTR operating at a first power supplyvoltage and low-voltage elements LVTR1 to LVTR3 operating at a secondpower voltage lower than the first power voltage. An element isolationlayer 303 may be formed between at least some of the circuit elementsHVTR and LVTR1 to LVTR3.

The high-voltage element HVTR may include a gate structure 310 and asource/drain region 320, and the gate structure 310 may include ahigh-voltage gate insulating layer 311, a high-voltage gate 312, a gatespacer 313, and/or the like. Each of the low-voltage elements LVTR1 toLVTR3 may include a gate structure 330 and a source/drain region 340,and the gate structure 330 may include a high-voltage gate insulatinglayer 331, a high-voltage gate 332, a gate spacer 333, and/or the like.

The high-voltage element HVTR may be disposed in the first well regionWA1 doped with impurities having a first conductivity-type, and thefirst well region WA1 may be a region doped with P-type impurities. Thefirst well region WA1 may be a pocket P-well region surrounded by thesecond well region WA2, and the second well region WA2 may be doped withimpurities having a second conductivity-type. The impurities having thesecond conductivity-type impurity may be N-type impurities.

Among the low-voltage elements LVTR1 to LVTR3, the first low-voltageelement LVTR1 may be disposed in the first well region WA1, and thesecond low-voltage element LVTR2 may be disposed in the second wellregion WA2. Since the first low-voltage element LVTR1 is also disposedin the first well region WA1 in addition to the high-voltage elementHVTR, a thickness of a gate insulating layer included in at least one ofthe NMOS elements HVTR and LVTR1 formed in the first well region WA1 maybe the same as a thickness of a gate insulating layer included in thesecond low-voltage element LVTR2 formed in the second well region WA2.

As described above, the low-voltage gate insulating layer 331 may have arelatively small thickness, as compared with a thickness of thehigh-voltage gate insulating layer 311. Referring to FIG. 9 , the firstwell region WA1 may have a first thickness T1 in a region in which thehigh-voltage element HVTR is disposed, and may have a second thicknessT2, greater than the first thickness T1, in a region in which the firstlow-voltage element LVTR1 is disposed.

As an example, a difference between the first thickness T1 and thesecond thickness T2 may correspond to a difference between a thicknessT_(OX1) of the high-voltage gate insulating layer 311 and a thicknessT_(OX2) of the low-voltage gate insulating layer 331. Therefore, anupper surface of the high-voltage gate insulating layer 311 and an uppersurface of the low-voltage gate insulating layer 331 may be disposed onthe same height level. In example embodiments, a peripheral circuitregion may be formed as illustrated in FIG. 10 by removing a portion ofthe substrate 301 in a region, in which the high-voltage element HVTR isto be formed, and forming the well regions WA1 to WA3 and the circuitelements HVTR and LVTR1 to LVTR3.

The third low-voltage element LVTR3 may be disposed in the third wellregion WA3. The third well region WA3 may be a region separated from thefirst well region WA1 and the second well region WA2 and may be dopedwith impurities having the same first conductivity-type as the firstwell region WA1. However, an impurity doping concentration of the thirdwell region WA3 may be different from an impurity doping concentrationof the first well region WA1. In addition, a negative voltage may beinput to the first well region WA1 as a body bias voltage of thehigh-voltage element HVTR and the first low-voltage element LVTR1, and aground voltage may be applied to the third well region WA3 as a bodybias voltage of the third low-voltage element LVTR3.

Since a negative voltage is input to the first well region WA1, thefirst low-voltage element LVTR1 may be selected as an element in which abody bias voltage is a negative voltage, among low-voltage NMOS elementsincluded in a row decoder. As an example, the first low-voltage elementLVTR1 may be an element included in a high-voltage switching circuit.

Referring to FIG. 10 , a peripheral circuit region of a semiconductordevice 300A according to example embodiments may include a plurality ofcircuit elements HVTR and LVTR1 to LVTR4. The plurality of circuitelements HVTR and LVTR1 to LVTR4 may be elements providing a row decoderconnected to wordlines, and may further include a fourth low-voltageelement LVTR4, as compared with the example embodiments illustrated inFIG. 9 .

The fourth low-voltage element LVTR4 may be formed in a fourth wellregion WA4 separated from first to third well regions WA1 to WA3, andthe fourth well region WA4 may be doped with impurities having the samesecond conductivity-type as the second well region WA2. Accordingly, thefourth low-voltage element LVTR4 may be a low-voltage PMOS element. Animpurity concentration of the fourth well region WA4 may be the same asor different from an impurity concentration of the second well regionWA2. As an example, the impurity concentration of the fourth well regionWA4 may be higher than the impurity concentration of the second wellregion WA2.

In the example embodiments described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10 ,the substrate 301 may have a first thickness T1 in a region in which thehigh-voltage element HVTR is formed, and may have a second thickness T2,greater than the first thickness T1, in another region. As illustratedin FIGS. 9 and 10 , a lower surface of the first well region WA1 may beformed on the same height level as lower surfaces of the third wellregion WA3 and the fourth well region WA4, and a lower surface of thesecond well region WA2 may be disposed to be relatively lower. Also, athickness of the first well region WA1 in the region, in which thehigh-voltage element HVTR is formed, may be smaller than a thickness ofthe first well region WA1 in the region in which the first low-voltageelement LVTR1 is formed. However, this is only an example, and the lowersurface of the first well region WA1 may be formed in a relatively lowerposition in the region in which the high-voltage element HVTR is formed,depending on a method of fabricating the semiconductor device 300, orthe like.

Referring to FIG. 11 , a peripheral circuit region of a semiconductordevice 400 according to example embodiments may include a plurality ofcircuit elements HVTR and LVTR1 to LVTR3. The plurality of circuitelements HVTR and LVTR1 to LVTR3 may be elements providing a row decoderconnected to wordlines.

Unlike the example embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10 , inexample embodiments illustrated in FIG. 11 , the substrate 301 may havea uniform thickness. Accordingly, an upper surface of the substrate 301may not have a step in the region in which the high-voltage element HVTRis formed and a region in which the low-voltage elements LVTR1 to LVTR3are formed. Accordingly, the first well region WA1 may also have auniform thickness.

As described above, the high-voltage gate insulating layer 411 includedin the high-voltage element HVTR may have a greater thickness than thelow-voltage gate insulating layer 431 included in each of thelow-voltage elements LVTR1 to LVTR3. Referring to FIG. 11 , the firstthickness T_(OX1) of the high-voltage gate insulating layer 411 may begreater than the second thickness T_(OX2) of the low-voltage gateinsulating layer 431, and thus, an upper surface of the high-voltagegate insulating layer 411 may be disposed to be higher than the topsurface of the low-voltage gate insulating layer 431. In addition, sincethe high-voltage gate 412 and the low-voltage gate 432 have the samestructure, the upper surface of the high-voltage gate 412 may bedisposed to be higher than the upper surface of the low-voltage gate432.

Referring to FIGS. 9 to 11 , in one direction (an X-axis direction)parallel to the upper surfaces of the substrates 301 and 401, the firstlow-voltage element LVTR1 may be formed between the high-voltage elementHVTR, formed in the first well region WA1, and the second low-voltageelements LVTR2 formed in the well region WA2. Also, the firstlow-voltage element LVTR1 may be disposed to be closer to a boundarybetween the first well region WA1 and the second well region WA2 thanthe high-voltage element HVTR. However, this is only an example, and thearrangement of the elements may be variously changed. As an example, thehigh-voltage element HVTR may be disposed to be closer to the boundarybetween the first well region WA1 and the second well region WA2 thanthe first low-voltage element LVTR1.

FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a row decoderaccording to example embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 12 , in a semiconductor device 500 according toexample embodiments, a row decoder 510 may be connected to a cell region520 through a ground select lines GSL, wordlines WL, and/or stringselect lines SSL. As an example, the row decoder 510 may be electricallyconnected to gate electrodes of memory cells included in the cell region520 through the ground select lines GSL, the wordlines WL, and thestring select lines SSL.

The row decoder 510 may include a block decoder 511, a high-voltageswitching circuit 512, a pull-up circuit 513, and/or a pass element unit514. The block decoder 511 may be a circuit selecting a single memoryblock in the cell region 520. The high-voltage switching circuit 512 mayincrease a level of a logic value, output from the block decoder 511, tooutput a block select signal, and pass elements included in the passelement unit 514 may be switched by the block select signal.

The pass element unit 514 may include a plurality of pass elementsconnected to the cell region 520 through ground select lines GSL, thewordlines WL, and the string select lines SSL. In general, voltagessupplied to the cell region 520 by the pass elements may have arelatively high level, as compared with a voltage for driving a circuit.Accordingly, the pass elements may be implemented as high-voltageelements which may endure a relatively high level of voltage, and thegate insulating layer of each of the pass elements may have a relativelygreat thickness to endure a high voltage difference between a gatestructure and a source/drain region. The pull-up circuit 513 may input ahigh voltage to gates of the pass elements in response to a signaloutput from the block decoder 511.

A negative voltage Vneg may be input to the high-voltage switchingcircuit 512 and the pass element unit 514. As an example, the negativevoltage Vneg may be input to at least some of the elements, included inthe high-voltage switching circuit 512 and the pass element unit 514, asa body bias voltage.

In example embodiments, high-voltage NMOS elements providing passelements may be formed in a first well region doped with p-typeimpurities and formed as a pocket P-well region. In addition, at leastone of the low-voltage NMOS elements, included in the high-voltageswitching circuit 512 and receiving the negative voltage Vneg as a bodybias voltage, may be formed together in the first well region. At leastone of the low-voltage PMOS element may be formed in a second wellregion, surrounding the first well region and doped with N-typeimpurities, to increase the degree of integration of circuit elementsincluded in the row decoder 510 and to shorten a connection path betweenthe circuit element, so that performance of the semiconductor device 500may be improved.

FIG. 13 is a schematic circuit diagram of a row decoder according toexample embodiments, and FIG. 14 is a timing diagram illustrating anoperation of the row decoder illustrated in FIG. 13 .

Referring first to FIG. 13 , a row decoder 600 may include a blockdecoder 610, a high-voltage switching circuit 620, a pull-up circuit630, a pass element unit 640, and/or the like. The block decoder 610 mayinclude a NAND gate 611 and/or an inverter 612, and may perform a NANDlogic operation on decoded signals O, P, Q, and R provided by a rowaddress. As an example, the block decoder 610 may further include acircuit determining whether a block selected from a row address is a badblock and interrupting an output of the NAND gate. The inverter 612 mayinvert the output of the NAND gate 611.

The high-voltage switching circuit 620 may operate in response to anoutput signal of the NAND gate 611 and the inverter 612. Thehigh-voltage switching circuit 620 may include PMOS elements PM1 andPM2, NMOS elements NM1 to NM5, and/or a depletion mode NMOS element NM6.

As an example, when the output of the NAND gate 611 has a low level, thefirst PMOS element PM1 may be turned on and the second PMOS element PM2may be turned off. Accordingly, the low power voltage VDD may be inputto a gate of each of the second NMOS element NM2 and the fourth NMOSelement NM4, and the second NMOS element NM2 and the fourth NMOS elementNM4 may be turned on. Thus, a low power supply voltage VDD may be inputto a node between the third NMOS element NM3 and the fourth NMOS elementNM4.

When a voltage on a node between the third NMOS element NM3 and thefourth NMOS element NM4 may increase to a threshold voltage of thedepletion mode NMOS element NM6, the depletion mode NMOS element NM6 maybe shut off. Accordingly, when the output of the NAND gate 611 is in alow level state, the high-voltage switching circuit 620 may beelectrically separated from a block wordline BLKWL to which the gates ofthe pass elements PT are connected. In some example embodiments, thepass elements PT may be turned on by a high power supply voltage VPPinput to the block wordline BLKWL by the pull-up circuit 630.

In contrast, when the output of the NAND gate 611 is in a high levelstate, the high-voltage switching circuit 620 may be connected to theblock wordline BLKWL. When the output of the NAND gate 611 is in a highlevel state, the first PMOS element PM1 may be turned off while anoutput of the inverter 612 has a low level, so that the second PMOSelement PM2 may be turned on. Accordingly, the low power supply voltageVDD may be input to a gate of each of the first NMOS element NM1 and thethird NMOS element NM3 to turn on the first NMOS element NM1 and thethird NMOS element NM3.

Since the third NMOS element NM3 is turned on, the negative voltage Vnegmay be input to the node between the third NMOS element NM3 and thefourth NMOS element NM4, unlike example embodiments in which the outputof the NAND gate 6111 is in a low level state. The negative voltage Vnegmay be input to the block wordline BLKWL through the depletion modeelement NM6. As an example, when a voltage on the block wordline BLKWLis a ground voltage, the negative voltage Vneg may be input to the blockwordline BLKWL through the depletion mode element NM6. When the voltageon the block wordline BLKWL is a high power supply voltage VPP, thevoltage on the block wordline BLKWL may be discharged through thedepletion mode element NM6.

The negative voltage Vneg may be input to the body of the pass elementsPT as a bias voltage. When the output of the NAND gate 611 is in a highlevel state, a voltage on the block wordline BLKWL connected to thegates of the pass elements PT by the high-voltage switching circuit 620may decrease to a negative voltage Vneg, so that the pass elements PTmay be turned off. According to example embodiments, the negativevoltage Vneg may be supplied to at least one of the string select lineSSL and the ground select line GSL. In the high-voltage switchingcircuit 620, the PMOS elements PM1 and PM2 and the first to fourth NMOSelements NM1 to NM4 may operate as a level shifter.

The pull-up circuit 630 may be connected between the high power supplyvoltage VPP and the block wordline BLKWL, and may input the high powersupply voltage VPP to the block wordline BLKWL in response to the outputof the NAND gate 611. Referring to FIG. 13 , the pull-up circuit 630 mayinclude a depletion mode element NH1 and a high-voltage PMOS elementPH1. A drain of the depletion mode element NH1 may receive the highpower supply voltage VPP, and a gate of the depletion mode element NH1may be connected to the block wordline BLKWL. A drain of thehigh-voltage PMOS element PH1 may be connected to the block wordlineBLKWL, and a gate of the high-voltage PMOS element PH1 may be connectedto an output terminal of the NAND gate 611.

When the output of the NAND gate 611 is in a low level state, thehigh-voltage PMOS element PH1 may be turned on and a threshold voltageof the depletion mode element NH1 may be input to the block wordlineBLKWL. Accordingly, the voltage on the block wordline BLKWL mayincrease. The voltage on the block wordline BLKWL may be input to thegate of the depletion mode element NH1 to turn on the depletion modeelement NH1. As a result, the high power supply voltage VPP may be inputto the block wordline BLKWL. As described above, when the output of theNAND gate 611 is in a low level state, the high-voltage switchingcircuit 620 may be separated from the block wordline BLKWL, so that thenegative voltage Vneg may not be input to the block wordline BLKWL.Accordingly, the pass elements PT may be turned on by the high powersupply voltage VPP input to the block wordline BLKWL.

When the output of the NAND gate 611 is in a high level state, thehigh-voltage PMOS element PH1 may be turned off and the high-voltage VPPmay not be input to the block wordline BLKWL. As described above, whenthe output of the NAND gate 611 is in a high level state, thehigh-voltage switching circuit 620 may be connected to the blockwordline BLKWL and the negative voltage Vneg may be input to the blockwordline BLKWL, so that the pass elements PT may be turned off by thenegative voltage Vneg input to the line block wordline BLKWL.

In the circuit diagram illustrated in FIG. 13 , a negative voltage Vnegmay be input, as a bias voltage, to a body of some NMOS elements, forexample, the pass elements PT and the first to fifth NMOS elements NM1to NMS. According to example embodiments, the first to fifth NMOSelements NM1 to NM5 may be high-voltage NMOS elements or low-voltageNMOS elements. When the first to fifth NMOS elements NM1 to NM5 arehigh-voltage NMOS elements, the first to fifth NMOS elements NM1 to NM5may be formed together with the pass elements PT in a single pocketP-well region.

In example embodiments, even when the first to fifth NMOS elements NM1to NM5 included in the high-voltage switching circuit 620 arelow-voltage NMOS elements, the pass elements PT, high-voltage NMOSelements, and the first to fifth NMOS elements NM1 to NM5, low-voltageNMOS elements, may be formed in a single pocket P-well region, asdescribed above with reference to FIGS. 5 to 11 . Thus, an area of aregion in which the row decoder 600 is disposed may be reduced, and thedegree of integration of a semiconductor device including the rowdecoder 600 may be improved.

For example, referring to FIG. 9 , the high-voltage element HVTR formedin the first well region WA1, a pocket P-well region, may be one of thepass elements PT, and the first low-voltage element LVTR1 formed in thefirst well region WA1 may be one of the first to fifth NMOS elements NM1to NM5. In addition, the second low-voltage element LVTR2 formed in thesecond well region WA2 surrounding the first well region WA1 may be oneof the PMOS elements PM1 and PM2 of the high-voltage switching circuit620, and the third low-voltage element LVTR3 formed in the third wellregion WA3 may be a PMOS element included in the inverter 612.

FIG. 14 may be a timing diagram illustrating an operation of the rowdecoder 600 illustrated in FIG. 13 . Referring to FIG. 14 , decodingsignals O, P, Q, and R input to the NAND gate 611 of the block decoder610 may have a high level during a program operation. The high level ofthe decoding signals O, P, Q, and R may be a low power supply voltageVDD. Accordingly, the output of the NAND gate 611 may have a low level,and a memory block connected to the row decoder 600 may be selected.

As described above, when the output of the NAND gate 611 is in a lowlevel state, the high-voltage switching circuit 620 may be separatedfrom the block wordline BLKWL by the depletion mode element NM6, andthus, a negative voltage Vneg may not be input to the block wordlineBLKWL. On the other hand, since the output of the NAND gate 611 is in alow level state, the high power supply voltage VPP may be input to theblock wordline BLKWL by the pull-up circuit 630 and the pass elements PTmay be turned on. In this case, the negative voltage Vneg may be inputto the body of the pass elements PT, as a bias voltage.

When the pass elements PT are turned on, a program voltage Vpgm may beinput to a selected wordline WLn as a selected wordline signal Sn for aprogram operation. When the program operation for inputting the programvoltage Vpgm is completed, a verify operation may be performed. Duringthe verification operation, a level of the selected wordline signal Sninput to the selected wordline WLn may be a negative voltage Vneg.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of asemiconductor device according to example embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 15 , a semiconductor device 700 may include a firstregion 710 and a second region 720 stacked in a first direction (aZ-axis direction). The first region 710 may be a peripheral circuitregion, and may include a row decoder DEC, a page buffer PB, and/or aperipheral circuit PC formed on a first substrate. As an example, theperipheral circuit PC may include a voltage generator, a source driver,an input/output circuit, and/or the like.

The second region 720 may be a cell region, and may include memory cellarrays MCA and first and second through-interconnection regions TB1 andTB2 formed on a second substrate. Through-interconnections, connectingthe first region 710 and the second region 720 to each other andextending in a vertical direction, may be disposed in each of the firstand second through-interconnection regions TB1 and TB2. Cell blocks CBK,included in each of the memory cell arrays MCA, may extend in a seconddirection (an X-axis direction) and may be arranged in a third direction(a Y-axis direction). According to example embodiments, at least onedummy block may be disposed between at least some of the cell blocksCBK.

The first region 710 may include a plurality of circuit elements forimplementing a row decoder DEC, a page buffer PB, a peripheral circuitPC, and/or the like, included in a peripheral circuit region, andinterconnection patterns connecting the circuit elements to each other.The circuit elements may be divided into low-voltage elements andhigh-voltage elements. However, according to example embodiments,elements operating at a power supply voltage, different from a low powersupply voltage input to the low-voltage elements and a high power supplyvoltage input to the high-voltage element, may be further provided.

In the first region 710, among the high-voltage elements, high-voltageNMOS elements may be surrounded by an N-well region doped with N-typeimpurities and may be formed in a pocket P-well region doped with P-typeimpurities. In example embodiments, at least one of the low-voltage NMOSelements included in the low-voltage elements may be formed in thepocket P-well region together with the high-voltage NMOS elements. Thehigh-voltage NMOS elements and the low-voltage NMOS elements formedtogether in the pocket P-well region may receive the same body biasvoltage.

A gate insulating layer of each of the low-voltage NMOS elements mayhave a thickness smaller than a thickness of a gate insulating layer ofeach of the high-voltage NMOS element. Accordingly, when a low-voltageNMOS element is formed together with the high-voltage NMOS elements in apocket P-well region having a planar upper surface, gate upper surfacesof the high-voltage NMOS elements may be disposed on a higher level thana gate upper surface of the low-voltage NMOS element. Alternatively, aportion of a substrate may be removed in advance in a region in whichthe high-voltage NMOS elements are formed, allowing gate upper surfacesof the high-voltage NMOS element and a gate surface of the low-voltageNMOS element to be formed on the same or substantially the same heightlevel.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments, and FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional viewtaken along line of FIG. 16 .

Referring to FIGS. 16 and 17 , a cell region CELL and a peripheralcircuit region PERI may be stacked in a first direction (a Z-axisdirection). A cell region CELL of a semiconductor device 800 may includea cell array region CAR and a cell contact region CTR. As an example,the cell array region CAR may be a region in which channel structures CHare disposed, and the cell contact region CTR may be a region in whichcell contacts CMS are disposed.

The peripheral circuit region PERI may include a first substrate 801A, aplurality of circuit elements HVTR and LVTR formed on the firstsubstrate 801A, and/or interconnection patterns 871 and 872 connected tothe plurality of circuit elements HVTR and LVTR. The plurality ofcircuit elements HVTR and LVTR may include high-voltage elements HVTRand low-voltage elements LVTR, and the interconnection patterns 871 and872 may include an element contact 871 and lower interconnections 872.

The high-voltage element HVTR may operate at a relatively high powersupply voltage, and may include a gate structure 830 and a source/drainregion 840. The low-voltage element LVTR may operate at a relatively lowpower supply voltage, and may include a gate structure 850 and asource/drain region 860. The gate structure 830 of the high-voltageelement HVTR may include a high-voltage gate insulating layer 831, ahigh-voltage gate 832, a gate spacer 833, and/or the like. The gatestructure 850 of the low-voltage element LVTR may include a low-voltagegate insulating layer 851, a low-voltage gate 852, a gate spacer 853,and/or the like.

The high-voltage gate insulating layer 831 may have a thickness greaterthan a thickness of the low-voltage gate insulating layer 851, and thehigh-voltage gate 832 and the low-voltage gate 852 may have the samestructure. Accordingly, an upper surface of the high-voltage gate 832may be disposed on a higher level than an upper surface of thelow-voltage gate 852. Alternatively, a portion of the first substrate801A may be removed to form a recess region in a region in which thehigh-voltage element HVTR is formed, allowing an upper surface of thehigh-voltage gate 832 and an upper surface of the low-voltage gate 852to be disposed on the same height level.

The cell array region CAR may include gate electrode layers 810 andinsulating layers 820 stacked in a first direction, perpendicular to anupper surface of the second substrate 801B, channel structures CHpenetrating through the gate electrode layers 810 and the insulatinglayers 820, and/or the like. A configuration of each of the channelstructures CH may be similar to that described above with reference toFIG. 6 .

The cell contact region CTR may include cell contacts CMC and athrough-interconnection TVC connected to the gate electrode layers 110.In a region in which the through-interconnection TVC is disposed,sacrificial layers 115 may remain without being replaced with the gateelectrode layers 110. Accordingly, the through-interconnection TVC maybe separated from the gate electrode layers 110 and may penetratethrough the sacrificial layers 115 and the insulating layers 120 to beconnected to the circuit elements HVTR and LVTR of the peripheralcircuit region PERI disposed below the cell contact region CTR. In theexample embodiments illustrated in FIG. 17 , a high-voltage element HVTRhaving a source/drain region connected to the through-interconnectionTVC may be a single pass element, among pass elements included in a rowdecoder in the peripheral circuit region PERI.

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of asemiconductor device according to example embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 18 , a semiconductor device 900 may include a firstregion 910 and a second region 920 stacked in a first direction (aZ-axis direction). The first region 910 may be a peripheral circuitregion, and the second region 920 may be a cell region. A configurationof each of the first region 910 and the second region 920 may be similarto that described above with reference to FIG. 15 .

Unlike the example embodiments described above with reference to FIG. 15, in example embodiments illustrated in FIG. 18 , the first region 910including the peripheral circuit region may be coupled to the secondregion 920 while being inverted. Accordingly, circuit elements, includedin the first region 910 and providing a row decoder DEC, a page bufferPB, and a peripheral circuit PC, and gate electrode layers, channelstructures, bitlines, and/or the like, included in the second region,may be disposed between a first substrate of the first region 910 and asecond substrate of the second region 920 in the first direction.

The circuit elements, disposed in the first region 910, may includehigh-voltage elements and low-voltage elements. At least some ofhigh-voltage NMOS element, among the high-voltage elements, may besurrounded by an N-well region doped with N-type impurities and may beformed in a P-well region doped with P-type impurities. In exampleembodiments, at least one of the low-voltage NMOS elements included inthe low-voltage elements may be formed in the pocket P-well regiontogether with the high-voltage NMOS elements to improve the degree ofintegration of the semiconductor device 900. In consideration ofoperating characteristics, a high-voltage NMOS element and a low-voltageNMOS element receiving the same body bias voltage may be formed togetherin one pocket P-well region.

FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 19 , a semiconductor device 1000 may include a cellregion CELL and a peripheral circuit region PERI stacked in a firstdirection (a Z-axis direction). Unlike the example embodiments describedabove with reference to FIG. 17 , the peripheral circuit region PERI maybe stacked with the cell region CELL while being inverted. Accordingly,circuit elements HVTR and LVTR of the peripheral circuit region PERI andgate electrode layers 1020 and channel structures CH of the cell regionCELL, and/or the like, may be disposed between a first substrate 1001Aof the peripheral circuit region PERI and a second substrate 1001B ofthe cell region CELL.

As an example, the semiconductor device 1000 may have a chip-to-chip(C2C) structure. The C2C structure may refer to a structure formed bymanufacturing a first chip including a peripheral circuit region PERI ona first wafer, manufacturing a second chip including a cell region CELLon a second wafer, different from the first wafer, and then connectingthe first chip and the second chip to each other using a bonding manner.As an example, the bonding manner may refer to a manner of physicallyand electrically connecting a bonding pad, formed on an uppermostinterconnection pattern layer of the first chip, and a bonding pad,formed on an uppermost interconnection pattern layer of the second chip,to each other. For example, when the bonding pads are formed of copper(Cu), the bonding manner may a Cu-to-Cu bonding manner. The bonding padsmay also be formed of aluminum (Al) or tungsten (W).

The peripheral circuit region PERI may include a plurality of circuitelements HVTR and LVTR and interconnection patterns 1071 and 1072connected to the plurality of circuit elements HVTR and LVTR. Theplurality of circuit elements HVTR and LVTR may include high-voltageelements HVTR and low-voltage elements LVTR, and the interconnectionpatterns 1071 and 1072 may include an element contact 1071 and lowerinterconnections 1072. The lower interconnections 1072 may be connectedto a bonding pad 1110 for coupling the cell region CELL and theperipheral circuit region PERI to each other.

The cell region CELL may include a cell array region CAR and a cellcontact region CTR. The cell array region CAR may be a region in whichchannel structures CH are disposed, and the cell contact region CTR maybe a region in which cell contacts CMC are disposed. The cell arrayregion CAR may include gate electrode layers 810 and insulating layers820 stacked in a first direction, perpendicular to an upper surface of asecond substrate 801B, channel structures CH penetrating through thegate electrode layers 810 and the insulating layers 820, and bitlinesconnected to the channel structures CH. A configuration of the channelstructures CH may be similar to that described above with reference toFIG. 6 . The cell contact region CTR may include cell contacts CMCconnected to the gate electrode layers 110.

The bitlines BL and the cell contacts CMC may be connected to a bondingpad 1120 formed on the cell region CELL. As described above in the C2Cstructure, a bonding pad 1110 of the peripheral circuit region PERI anda bonding pad 1120 of the cell region CELL may be connected to eachother in a bonding manner.

To efficiently connect the peripheral circuit region PERI and the cellregion CELL to each other, the arrangement of circuits included in theperipheral circuit region PERI may be determined depending on thearrangement of the cell array region CAR and the cell contact regionCTR. As an example, a page buffer connected to the channel structures CHthrough the bitlines BL may be disposed in a region stacked with thecell array region CAR in the peripheral circuit region PERI. Inaddition, a row decoder connected to the gate electrode layers 1010 maybe disposed in a region stacked with the cell contact region CTR in theperipheral circuit region PERI.

In the peripheral circuit region PERI, the high-voltage element HVTR mayoperate at a relatively high power supply voltage, and the low-voltageelement LVTR may operate at a relatively lower power supply voltage. Theconfigurations of the high-voltage element HVTR and the low-voltageelement LVTR may be similar to those described above with reference toFIG. 17 .

As an example, the high-voltage gate insulating layer 1031 may have athickness greater than a thickness of the low-voltage gate insulatinglayer 1051, and the high-voltage gate 1032 and the low-voltage gate 1052may have the same structure. Accordingly, an upper surface of thehigh-voltage gate 1032 may be disposed on a higher level than an uppersurface of the low-voltage gate 1052. Alternatively, a recess region maybe formed by removing a portion of the first substrate 1001A in a regionin which the high-voltage element HVTR is formed, so the upper surfaceof the high-voltage gate 1032 and an upper surface of the low-voltagegate 1052 may be disposed on the same height level. In exampleembodiments illustrated in FIG. 19 , the high-voltage element HVTR,directly connected to one of the cell contacts CMC by the bonding pads1110 and 1120 and the interconnection patterns 1071 and 1072, may bepass elements included in a row decoder.

FIGS. 20 to 23 are diagrams illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments.

FIGS. 20 and 21 may illustrate a comparative example provided todescribe a semiconductor device according to example embodiments, andFIGS. 22 and 23 may be diagrams illustrating a semiconductor deviceaccording to example embodiments.

Referring to FIGS. 20 and 21 , a semiconductor device 2000 according toa comparative example may include a plurality of circuit elements HVTR,LVTR1, and LVTR2, and the plurality of circuit elements HVTR, LVTR1, andLVTR2 may be disposed in a plurality of well regions WA1 to WA4. As anexample, a high-voltage element HVTR may be provided in a first wellregion WA1, and the first well region WA1 may be provided as a pocketP-well surrounded by a second well region WA2. Accordingly, thehigh-voltage element HVTR may be a high-voltage NMOS element.

Among the low-voltage elements LVTR1 and LVTR2, a first low-voltageelement LVTR1 may be a low-voltage NMOS element formed in a third wellregion WA3 doped with P-type impurities. A second low-voltage elementLVTR2 may be a low-voltage PMOS element formed in a fourth well regionWA4 doped with N-type impurities. An impurity concentration of the thirdwell region WA3 may be lower than an impurity concentration of the firstwell region WA1.

Referring to FIG. 21 , a gate structure 2030 of the high-voltage elementHVTR may include a high-voltage gate insulating layer 2031 and ahigh-voltage gate 2032, a gate spacer 2033, and/or the like. Each of thelow-voltage elements LVTR1 and LVTR2 may include a low-voltage gateinsulating layer 2051 and a low-voltage gate 2052, a gate spacer 2053,and/or the like. In example embodiments, a thickness T_(OX1) of thehigh-voltage gate insulating layer 2031 may be greater than a thicknessT_(OX2) of the low-voltage gate insulating layer 2051.

Referring to FIGS. 20 and 21 , no element may be formed in the secondwell region WA2 surrounding the first well region WA1, and the secondwell region WA2 and the fourth well region WA4 may be separated fromeach other by a predetermined or alternatively, desired gap.Accordingly, the degree of integration of the semiconductor device 2000,in which as many circuit elements HVTR, LVTR1, and LVTR2 should bedisposed as possible in a limited area, may be reduced.

Referring to FIGS. 22 and 23 , a semiconductor device 2100 according toexample embodiments may include a plurality of circuit elements HVTR andLVTR1 to LVTR3, and the plurality of circuit elements HVTR and LVTR1 toLVTR3 may be disposed in a plurality of well regions WA1 to WA3. As anexample, the high-voltage element HVTR may be disposed in a first wellregion WA1, and the first well region WA1 may be provided as a pocketP-well surrounding the second well region WA2. Accordingly, similarly tothe example embodiments described with reference to FIGS. 20 and 21 ,the high-voltage element HVTR may be a high-voltage NMOS element.

Among the low-voltage elements LVTR1 to LVTR3, a first low-voltageelement LVTR1 may be formed together with the high-voltage element HVTRin the first well region WA1. As an example, among the low-voltageelements LVTR1 to LVTR3, an element having the same body bias voltage asthe high-voltage element HVTR may be selected as the first low-voltageelement LVTR1. A second low-voltage element LVTR2 may be a low-voltagePMOS element surrounding the first well region WA1 and formed in thesecond well region WA2 doped with N-type impurities.

A third low-voltage element LVTR3 may be a low-voltage NMOS elementformed in a third well region WA3 doped with P-type impurities. In theexample embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 22 and 23 , among thelow-voltage NMOS elements, an element having the same body bias voltageas the high-voltage element HVTR may be selected as the firstlow-voltage element LVTR1 to be formed in the first well region WA1. Inaddition, an element having a body bias voltage different from that ofthe high-voltage element HVTR may be selected as a third low-voltageelement LVTR3 to be formed in the third well region WA3.

Referring to FIG. 23 , the gate structure 2130 of the high-voltageelement HVTR may include a high-voltage gate insulating layer 2131, ahigh-voltage gate 2132, a gate spacer 2133, and/or the like. The gatestructure 2150 of each of the low-voltage elements LVTR1 to LVTR3 mayinclude a low-voltage gate insulating layer 2151, a low-voltage gate2152, a gate spacer 2153, and/or the like.

In example embodiments, a thickness T_(OX1) of the high-voltage gateinsulating layer 2131 may be greater than a thickness T_(OX2) of thelow-voltage gate insulating layer 2151. The high-voltage gate 2132 andthe low-voltage gate 2152 may have the same structure. Referring to FIG.23 , an upper surface of the high-voltage gate 2132 and an upper surfaceof the low-voltage gate 2152 may be disposed on the same height level byremoving a portion of the substrate 2101 in a region in which thehigh-voltage element HVTR is formed. Accordingly, as illustrated in FIG.23 , the substrate may have a first thickness T1 in a region in whichthe first well region WA1 is formed, whereas the substrate may have asecond thickness T2, greater than the first thickness T1, in a region inwhich the third well region WA3 and the fourth well region WA4 areformed. However, according to example embodiments, the upper surface ofthe high-voltage gate 2132 may be disposed on a higher level than theupper surface of the low-voltage gate 2152 by not removing a portion ofthe substrate.

Referring to FIGS. 22 and 23 , a high-voltage NMOS element and alow-voltage NMOS element may be disposed together in the first wellregion WA1, and a low-voltage PMOS element may also be disposed in thesecond well region WA2 surrounding the first well region WA1.Accordingly, as compared with the comparative example described abovewith reference to FIGS. 20 and 21 , many circuit elements HVTR and LVTR1TO LVTR3 may be disposed in a smaller area, and the degree ofintegration of the semiconductor device 2100 may be improved.

FIG. 24 is a schematic block diagram of a storage device including asemiconductor device according to example embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 24 , a memory system 2200 may include a memory device2210 and/or a memory controller 2220. The memory system 2200 may supporta plurality of channels CH1 to CHm, and the memory device 2210 and thememory controller 2220 may be connected to each other through theplurality of channels CH1 to CHm. For example, the memory system 2200may be implemented as a storage device such as a solid state drive(SSD).

The memory device 2210 may include a plurality of memory elements NVM11to NVMmn Each of the memory elements NVM11 to NVMmn may be connected toone of the plurality of channels CH1 to CHm through a corresponding way.For example, the memory elements NVM11 to NVM1 n may be connected to afirst channel CH1 through ways W11 to W1 n, and memory elements NVM21 toNVM2 n may be connected to a second channel CH2 through ways W21 to W2n. In example embodiments, each of the memory elements NVM11 to NVMmnmay be implemented as any memory unit which may operate depending on anindividual command from the memory controller 2220. For example, each ofthe memory elements NVM11 to NVMmn may be implemented as a chip or adie, but example embodiments are not limited thereto.

The memory controller 2220 may transmit and receive signals to and fromthe memory device 10 through the plurality of channels CH1 to CHm. Forexample, the memory controller 20 may transmit commands CMDa to CMDm,addresses ADDRa to ADDRm, and data DATAa to DATAm to the memory device2210 through the channels CH1 to CHm, or may receive the data DATAa toDATAm from the memory device 2210 through the channels CH1 to CHm.

The memory controller 2220 may select a nonvolatile memory device, amongnonvolatile memory elements connected to a corresponding channel througheach channel, and may transmit and receive signals to and from theselected nonvolatile memory elements. For example, the memory controller2220 may select a nonvolatile memory device NVM11, among the memoryelements NVM11 to NVM1 n connected to a first channel CH1. The memorycontroller 2220 may transmit the command CMDa, the address ADDRa, andthe data DATAa to the selected memory device NVM11 through the firstchannel CH1, or may receive the data DATAa from the selected memorydevice NVM11.

The memory controller 2220 may transmit and receive signals to and fromdifferent channels, in parallel, through different channels. Forexample, the memory controller 2220 may transmit the command CMDb to thememory device 2210 through a second channel CH2 while transmitting thecommand CMDa to the memory device 2210 through the first channel CH1.For example, the memory controller 2220 may receive data DATAb from thememory device 2210 through the second channel CH2 while receiving dataDATAa from the memory device 10 through the first channel CH1.

The memory controller 2220 may control the overall operation of thememory device 2210. The memory controller 2220 may transmit signals tothe channels CH1 to CHm to control each of the memory elements NVM11 toNVMmn connected to the channels CH1 to CHm. For example, the memorycontroller 2220 may transmit a command CMDa and an address ADDRa to thefirst channel CH1 to control a selected one of the memory elements NVM11to NVM1 n.

Each of the memory elements NVM11 to NVMmn may operate under the controlof the memory controller 2220. For example, the memory device NVM11 mayprogram the data DATAa based on the command CMDa, the address ADDRa, andthe data DATAa provided to the first channel CH1. For example, thememory device NVM21 may read the data DATAb based on the command CMDband the address ADDRb provided to the second channel CH2, and maytransmit the read data DATAb to the memory controller 20.

In FIG. 24 , the memory device 2210 is illustrated as communicating withthe memory controller 20 through m channels and including n nonvolatilememory elements to correspond to each channel. However, the number ofchannels and the number of nonvolatile memory elements connected to asingle channel may vary.

The memory device 2210 and the memory controller 2220 may be implementedas a semiconductor device according to example embodiments. As anexample, in the memory device 2210 and the memory controller 2220, ahigh-voltage NMOS device and a low-voltage NMOS element may be formedtogether in a single pocket P-well region, and a low-voltage PMOSelement may be formed in an N-well region surrounding the pocket P-wellregion. Accordingly, the degree of integration of the memory device 2210and the memory controller 2220 may be improved, and operationperformance thereof may also be improved.

As described above, both high-voltage elements and low-voltage elementsmay be formed in a first well region formed in a peripheral circuitregion and receiving a negative voltage as a body bias voltage, andlow-voltage elements may also be formed in a second well regionsurrounding the first well region. Accordingly, the degree ofintegration of circuit elements formed in a peripheral circuit regionmay be improved to improve the degree of integration of a semiconductordevice, and an electrical path between the circuit elements may beefficiently disposed to improve performance of the semiconductor device.

One or more of the elements disclosed above may include or beimplemented in one or more processing circuitries such as hardwareincluding logic circuits; a hardware/software combination such as aprocessor executing software; or a combination thereof. For example, theprocessing circuitries more specifically may include, but is not limitedto, a central processing unit (CPU), an arithmetic logic unit (ALU), adigital signal processor, a microcomputer, a field programmable gatearray (FPGA), a System-on-Chip (SoC), a programmable logic unit, amicroprocessor, application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.

While example embodiments have been shown and described above, it willbe apparent to those skilled in the art that modifications andvariations could be made without departing from the scope of the presentinventive concepts as defined by the appended claims.

1. A semiconductor device comprising: a peripheral circuit regionincluding circuit elements on a substrate, the circuit elements of apage buffer and a row decoder; and a cell region including gateelectrode layers, stacked in a first direction, perpendicular to anupper surface of the substrate, and connected to the row decoder, andchannel structures extending in the first direction to penetrate throughthe gate electrode layers and to be connected to the page buffer,wherein the row decoder includes high-voltage elements, operating at afirst power supply voltage, and low-voltage elements operating at asecond power supply voltage, lower than the first power supply voltage,at least one first high-voltage element, among the high-voltageelements, is in a first well region doped with impurities having a firstconductivity-type, and at least one of the low-voltage elements is in asecond well region surrounding the first well region and doped withimpurities having a second conductivity-type, different from the firstconductivity-type.
 2. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein thehigh-voltage elements are pass elements of the row decoder, and thelow-voltage elements are of a block decoder, a high-voltage switchingcircuit, and a pull-up circuit of the row decoder.
 3. The semiconductordevice of claim 1, wherein the low-voltage elements include firstlow-voltage elements and second low-voltage elements, at least one ofthe first low-voltage elements is in the first well region, and at leastone of the second low-voltage elements is in the second well region. 4.The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein each of the high-voltageelements includes a high-voltage gate and a high-voltage gate insulatinglayer between the high-voltage gate and the substrate, and each of thelow-voltage elements includes a low-voltage gate and a low-voltage gateinsulating layer between the low-voltage gate and the substrate, and athickness of the high-voltage gate insulating layer is greater than athickness of the low-voltage gate insulating layer.
 5. The semiconductordevice of claim 4, wherein an upper surface of the high-voltage gateinsulating layer and an upper surface of the low-voltage gate insulatinglayer are on the same height level.
 6. The semiconductor device of claim5, wherein a thickness of the first well region in a region, in whichthe first high-voltage element is, is smaller than a thickness of thefirst well region in a region in which the first low-voltage element isdisposed.
 7. The semiconductor device of claim 4, wherein an uppersurface of the high-voltage gate insulating layer is at a higher levelthan an upper surface of the low-voltage gate insulating layer.
 8. Thesemiconductor device of claim 7, wherein a thickness of the first wellregion in a region, in which the first high-voltage element is disposed,is the same as a thickness of the first well region in a region in whichthe first low-voltage element is disposed.
 9. The semiconductor deviceof claim 3, wherein the substrate includes a third well region dopedwith impurities having the first conductivity-type and separated fromthe first well region and the second well region, and at least some ofthe first low-voltage elements are in the third well region.
 10. Thesemiconductor device of claim 9, wherein a negative voltage is input tothe first well region, and a ground voltage is input to the first wellregion.
 11. The semiconductor device of claim 9, wherein the substrateincludes a fourth well region doped with impurities having the secondconductivity-type and separated from the first to third well regions,and at least some of the second low-voltage elements are in the fourthwell region.
 12. The semiconductor device of claim 11, wherein animpurity concentration of the fourth well region is higher than animpurity concentration of the second well region.
 13. The semiconductordevice of claim 1, wherein the row decoder is adjacent to the cellregion in a second direction, parallel to the upper surface of thesubstrate, and the page buffer is adjacent to the cell region in a thirddirection, parallel to the upper surface of the substrate andintersecting the second direction.
 14. The semiconductor device of claim1, wherein the substrate is a first substrate, the cell region includesa second substrate stacked with the peripheral circuit region in thefirst direction, and the channel structures extend in the firstdirection to be connected to the second substrate.
 15. The semiconductordevice of claim 14, wherein the circuit elements, the gate electrodelayers, and the channel structures are between the first substrate andthe second substrate in the first direction.
 16. A semiconductor devicecomprising: a peripheral circuit region including a substrate having afirst well region doped with impurities having a first conductivity-typeand a second well region doped with impurities having a secondconductivity-type, different from the first conductivity-type, NMOSelements in the first well region, and PMOS elements in the second wellregion; and a cell region including gate electrode layers stacked in afirst direction, perpendicular to an upper surface of the substrate, andchannel structures extending in the first direction to penetrate throughthe gate electrode layers, wherein a thickness of a gate insulatinglayer included in at least one of the NMOS elements in the first wellregion is the same as a thickness of a gate insulating layer included inat least one of the PMOS elements in the second well region.
 17. Thesemiconductor device of claim 16, wherein the NMOS elements in the firstwell region includes first low-voltage elements, including a gateinsulating layer having a first thickness, and first high-voltageelements including a gate insulating layer having a second thickness,greater than the first thickness, and each of the first high-voltageelements is connected to at least one of the gate electrode layers. 18.The semiconductor device of claim 17, wherein a thickness of the gateinsulating layer included in the at least one of the PMOS elements inthe second well region is the first thickness.
 19. The semiconductordevice of claim 16, wherein the first low-voltage elements are betweenthe first high-voltage elements and the PMOS elements, in the secondwell region, in a direction parallel to the upper surface of thesubstrate.
 20. (canceled)
 21. (canceled)
 22. (canceled)
 23. (canceled)24. (canceled)
 25. A semiconductor device comprising: a substrateincluding a first well region, doped with impurities having a firstconductivity-type, and a second well region surrounding the first wellregion and doped with impurities having a second conductivity-type,different from the first conductivity-type; a plurality of NMOS elementsin the first well region; and a plurality of PMOS elements in the secondwell region, wherein the first well region is a pocket P-well, and atleast one of the plurality of NMOS elements includes at least one firstNMOS element and at least one second NMOS device, and the at least onesecond NMOS element operates at the same power supply voltage as theplurality of PMOS elements.
 26. (canceled)
 27. (canceled)
 28. (canceled)29. (canceled)